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DRAFT FOR ATTORNEY REVIEW — NOT FINAL

Section 2

Citation
Section 2
Parent Document
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. James T. Lynn, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, 501 F.2d 848 (1974)
Effective Date
1974-09-25

Other Sections in This Document (236)

Full Text

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Appropriations are made many months, and sometimes years, in advance of expenditures. Congress acts with imperfect knowledge in trying to legislate in fields that are highly technical and constantly undergoing change. New circumstances will develop to make obsolete and mistaken the decisions reached by Congress at the appropriation stage. It is not practicable for Congress to adjust to these new developments by passing large numbers of supplemental appropriation bills. Were Congress to control expenditures by confining administrators to narrow statutory details it would perhaps protect its power of the purse but it would not protect the purse itself. Discretion is needed for the sound management of public funds. 32